The carpet company will take a 8,100 square foot unit on the north side of the 5th floor.

“[Fort Street Studio] was attracted to the building because of the elegant lobby and the large floor plate which will allow them to display their wild silk custom designed carpets easily.” said Barbara Raskob, director of leasing at the Kaufman Organization and in-house broker. “The classic wood floors serve as a good background for the carpets.”

Mrs. Raskbob was joined by Steve Kaufman as in-house brokers for the landlord. Jim St. Andre of Peter McCuen & Associates represented the tenant. The asking rent was in the high $30s per square foot for the building in Chelsea.

Built in 1901, 22 West 19th Street was known as the Cluett Building as it was the headquarters for Troy-founded Cluett, Peabody & Co. The building stands 11 stories high with 150,000 square feet of rentable space, ranging from 11,400 to 18,300 square feet per floor.

“The lobby was recently redone by FX Fowle Architects,” Mrs. Raskob further noted. “And a modernization of an additional freight car is under way.”

In addition to 22 West 19th Street, the Kaufman Organization manages over three dozen commercial office and retail buildings in New York metropolitan area. Their portfolio includes 100-104 Fifth Avenue, 1313 Broadway, and 450 Seventh Avenue.

Janis Provisor and Brad Davis founded Fort Street Studio in 1996 as a carpet company after traveling to China and being inspired. The company specializes in luxurious hand knotted “wild” Dandong silk carpets and has grown to open in Los Angeles, Hong Kong, and, of course, New York.